Forget that "let it snow" routine. Henry Brun & The Latin Playerz are in the Christmas music house, so it's time to let it salsa, merengue, second line and more.

"I've been wanting to do a Christmas album for five years," percussionist and bandleader Brun said. "But it's hard to get it done early in the year. We decided to celebrate Christmas in July and finally did it."

"We looked at styles of music before we looked at songs," Brun said. "One thing we've always done is take our music and introduce it to new people all the time. We looked at what the Playerz represent and what's evolved through 21 years of playing. We wanted the styles to represent what the band stands for musically.

"It's Christmas music seen through the lens of Latin Playerz and all the influences we have from Puerto Rico, New York, Mexico and San Antonio. It's Latin music we can call our own. This is San Antonio-raised music."

A Very Latin Christmas was a collaborative effort with in-house arrangements by trumpeter and music director Adrian Ruiz, pianist Travis Davis and bassist Matthew Franke.

"I've always loved Christmas music, and Christmas is something everybody can identify with," Davis said. "So the arrangements had to sound like Christmas with Latin flavor and Latin twists. But it should always sound like Christmas."

Ruiz has worked with The Latin Playerz for more than a decade. His arrangement of White Christmas was inspired by a live Charlie Parker rendition.

"I decided to do a salsa/Latin jazz version keeping the Charlie Parker influence and framework," he said. "You definitely have to put direct comparisons out of your mind."

The songs on A Very Latin Christmas definitely bear The Latin Playerz stamp.

"I told the guys they needed to take ownership, to make the songs theirs. They did," Brun said. "On Mi Humilde Oración, Gabe Pintor made it his. The Christmas Song? Adrian made it his. The guys really captured the soul of the songs."

The CD features a world of Latin variety, textures and tempos.

"We have all kinds of combinations we can play with," Ruiz said. "We can go with a full orchestra as well as with quintets and trios. Once we picked a style, we chose the band configuration."

Arranging and playing songs that so many people know might put pressure on arrangers and musicians.

"You have to walk a fine line," Davis said. "You want to find the balance between what's familiar and what's not. It's a challenge and an ongoing process. Some of the tunes have been in the works a long time. Senor Grinch is an arrangement I wrote five years ago."

"This is an album that takes you through changes," Brun said. "You can listen to it alone, and you can listen to it at a party. Everyone gave a piece of themselves to make it happen. And it was fun to make."

Special guests include Dr. John Mills (saxophones, flute, clarinet), Robert Ybarra (guitar) and members of the Youth Orchestras of San Antonio, Xibuke Dance Company. Tickets cost $22-$50 at the Majestic/Empire Theatre box office; $32.15-$62.05 through Ticketmaster, 800-745-3000.

Christmas albums are tricky things. Release one and you're going up against the classics of the genre as well as new releases by artists ranging from Paul Anka to Scott Weiland. Retailers this year started hitting shoppers with holiday songs the day after Halloween. By the time Dec. 25 rolls around, lots of folks will be ready for silence or maybe the collected works of the Ramones.

Brun and his all-star Latin Playerz do a superb job of infusing 15 Christmas and seasonal songs with ritmo, infectious Latin rhythms that swing. There are standards, White Christmas, Silent Night, The Christmas Song and selections such as Coventry Carol, Mi Humilde Oración and Villancico de las Campanas from off the beaten holiday path.

A Very Latin Christmas rises to the top of the Christmas-album heap because the musicianship is flawless; Judi Deleon's voice soars on Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas and Silent Night, purrs on Santa Baby The arrangements by various band members are clever, catchy and imaginative.

Give a listen to the big-band White Christmas, the grooving Señor Grinch and the New Orleans-style Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, and you might hold off on the Ramones until Dec. 26.